The device must be formatted as HFS+ in order to be used with Time Machine. Starting macOS Time Machine Backups to My Passport and External USB Drives. When you use Time Machine, the inbuilt backup software for Mac, to back up all of your Mac data, if it is stuck in “Preparing backup” stage, you. It would be hard to diagnose further without being able to handle it in person. But, most of the time, it is the drive mechanism itself. Sometimes, you can remove the hard drive and install it in another enclosure, as it is just the board inside the enclosure that has failed. What is the mac operating system number for sierra. Most of the time there is either a clicking, or a very faint buzz/beeping sound.
Many times when there is a consistent flashing pattern on hard drive LEDs, it means the drive is in a failure state, especially when they won't mount.
